No One Likes a Sad Face
by the.nerd.voice
Summary: After encountering a neurotic woman within a crowd of spectators at a shopping mall crime scene, Detective Korsak discovers that the woman may not be so crazy after all. He relies on his team to help him find the truth. Takes place after season 4. No spoilers. (Trigger Warning: Abuse)
1. Chapter 1

**AN: I apologize if the document you see on FFNet is not properly formatted. For some reason, it isn't showing up for me. There are page breaks and all the other stuff as not to confuse anyone when the scene changes. I hate author's notes, but I thought this had to be said.**

"Alright, what do we have here?" Jane Rizzoli slowly pulls on a pair of black latex gloves, squatting slightly to get a better look at the body before her.

"African-American Male, age thirty-five. Driver's license on him says his name is Thatcher Smith." Frankie Rizzoli reads to her from his handheld notepad. "The assailant was tackled by mall security, the crime was caught on the cameras," The young man points to the cameras around the room, "Korsak is getting the tapes. Seems the guy pick pocketed a few other people before someone noticed and fought back. Assailant's name is Don Montgomery. He was armed when tackled." He shrugs, folding the pad and slipping it back into his pocket, "Janey it seems pretty cut and dry."

She stands up, "Seems that way. Where's Maura?" Jane glances around, noticing a gathering of people outside the store. Maura in deep conversation with one of them, "Maura," She calls to her, waving her arm, "Doctor Isles."

Maura picks her head up, motioning that she would be there in just one moment. She nods to the thin older woman she was speaking to before walking to the body, "I apologize. A woman over there was telling me a fascinating story about a young woman that was killed here a few months ago...said the whole thing was covered up." She shrugs.

"She's lying." Jane shakes her head, "There wasn't anything reported." She motions to the body, "Just call this guy dead and bag him up so we can go. Quick case means we get to go home early."

The medical examiner crouches next to the body, looking him over, "This man was shot."

"What? Is that where all the blood and gunpowder residue came from?" Jane smirks, picking her head up again, "The hell is taking Korsak so long." She glances around when Frankie points in a direction, she turns her head to follow the nod of her brother's head, "That woman again." She sighs, "Korsak." She calls, "The hell is up with this woman..." It wasn't a question, just something she was attempting to rationalize with herself.

The older man joins the group, "Frankie, you still have my pad?" When the young man in question nods, Korsak motions to the woman they were all stopped by to talk to, "Take that woman aside and get her information. Tell her I'll look into it."

"Seriously?" Frankie raises an eyebrow.

"Yeah, go." Vince sighs, watching him walk off. He hands a plastic case containing a DVD to Jane, "Everything is on there. They compiled it all together for me. They said he comes here a couple times a week. This was the first time he was caught. Young homeless kid, early twenties." He shakes his head, "The security guards said he usually isn't caught because he doesn't take all the money from the people he pickpockets. Just a few dollars and puts the wallet back. They don't bother him because two dollars isn't anything to throw him out for. He buys himself something to eat for the day. Then he gets back on the bus and they don't know where he goes."

"They mention anything about a family? Someone for us to contact?" Jane placed her hands on her hips, watching her mentor.

He shakes his head, "No, but I'll see what I can come up with."

Maura stands, placing her collected samples into her doctor's bag. "I can talk with the young man, if you'd like. He doesn't appear to sound as if he purposefully meant to hurt anyone, a sign of possible mental instability, but I can't be for certain unless I evaluate him." She nods, pulling the bag up onto her shoulder more.

Jane raises an eyebrow, "This is open and shut, but you go on right ahead. I know you've been looking for a hobby, if talking to criminals is what you want to do, go for it."

The doctor tilts her head to the side, offering a smile, "Thank you." Maura Isles walks away from the crime scene, the rest of the detectives not far behind.

–-**2 Days Later. Evening.–-**

Jane Rizzoli glances into her mug, brought to her care of Maura Isles. She scowls to the woman, "I asked for coffee. This isn't coffee. What the hell is this?"

"That is an organic blend of spiced mandarin, oolong tea. You'll be able to detect a hint of juicy tangerines, lemons, ripe blood oranges, cinnamon, ginger, star anise, cloves, and pepper." Maura grins proudly, "Taken straight from the Chinese trade routes."

The detective looks back into her mug, then back up to her friend, "I don't know what an oolong is. Will I turn into one if I drink this?"

"It's a form of tea." The doctor scowls slightly, a hint of a smirk on her face, "You know, you could try it before you start to admonish me. You may actually enjoy it."

"Tasted great to me." Korsak calls out, smiling to the woman.

"Thank you, Detective Korsak." Maura grins to the older man before looking back to the raven haired woman in front of her, "Just try it. One sip."

Jane gives Korsak a sarcastic smile, "Yeah, thanks, Detective Korsak." The pitch of her voice teases her friend, sighing as she sips a little, raising her eyebrows. "Not bad. Caffeinated?"

"Of course not. You have too much caffeine in your diet and you are dependent on it, which I'm going to shy you away from my showing you other options."

"Oh, come on, Maur." Jane calls out, hearing her friend giggle.

Frankie enters from the direction of the elevators, smiling, "Don Montgomery confessed. Actually not a bad guy, aside from the murderer thing. Looks like we'll be able to watch the Pats game tonight after all."

Korsak leans forward ever so slightly, peering into his computer screen, checking his notepad to make sure he was spelling the names correctly. "Doctor Isles, could you come here a minute." His voice wasn't powerful, but enough to catch the attention of the young woman without causing a distraction for the rest of the room."

"Yes, what is it?" Maura walks closer, glancing to what the man was pointing to on the screen, "That appears to be an open depressed basilar skull fracture of the occipital bone, but I would need to see the actual X-Ray screens in order to say for certain." She shakes her head, "She looks so young."

He nods, "Sixteen." He sighs, "Could she die from an injury such as this?"

"I'd be more surprised if she didn't." She places her hands on her hips, her face truly disgusted by the heinous act, "What is this from?"

"The woman that I was talking to today-"

"The thin woman with the short auburn hair from the crowd at the mall?" Maura looks to him, nodding when he nods, "I spoke to her as well. Fascinating story. Jane seems to think she was a bit neurotic for it to be true."

"This is the case she was talking about." Korsak points to the screen, "Two years ago. On the autopsy reports, the cause of death was listed as ectopic pregnancy."

"There is no possible way." She can feel the anger begin to rise in herself, "There wouldn't have been an arrest. This is a cover up."

Jane picks her head up from her tea, which isn't that bad at all after a few more sips, "What's going on?" She asks gently.

Korsak stands, "How about we go into the other room so that we can all see at the same time?" He motions to the media room. As they file in, he accesses the case file he was reading before, showing pictures, "Frost was much better at this than I am." He sighs, "Let's try anyway." Crime scene photographs fill the screen, as well as one of a young teenage girl with a name beneath her picture."

The tall thin woman makes a face, "Grace Blas...I don't know if the letters ZCZYK actually make a sound...at least one that doesn't resemble a sneeze." She smirks.

"Blaszczyk, her name is pronounced Blas-chick." Maura folds her arms, when she receives a look from the other woman, "A Polish last name, the root sounds between Serbian and Polish are very similar."

Korsak nods, smirking, "Very good, Doctor Isles. Couldn't have said it better myself. Anyway, this young woman was found this way, as told to us by one Susan Kowalski. This is the woman who was within the audience at the crime scene today. She's a teacher at the public school not far from here." He nods, bringing up the death certificate and autopsy report, "As you can see on Ms. Blaszczyk's file, it says her cause of death is an ectopic pregnancy." When he receives a look from both of the Rizzoli detectives, he nods, "Exactly."

"Natural cause of death would mean no investigation." Frankie watches, slowly folding his arms, "The parents never questioned it?"

"Police reports are clear. I don't even think they questioned the parents. Wouldn't have had to." Korsak shakes his head.

"Where was she when the body was found?" Maura looks up at the larger screen on the wall, able to see the details much better.

"The same shopping mall we were in today." The older man nods, "There's some sort of annual class activity that has the students scouring the mall in order to find particular things. There isn't much about it here since no one was questioned concerning that, only about how and when the body was found. Maybe we bring is Ms. Kowalski to see what she witnessed that day since she seems to be the only one who cares."

The medical examiner nods, "I'd also like to put in a request form to have the body exhumed so that I can perform my own autopsy..." Maura swallows, stepping closer to the picture and slowly placing her hand on the screen against the cheek of the person shown in the photograph, "This young girl was murdered."


	2. Chapter 2

The neurotic woman clutches the handle of her purse in front of her as she slowly glances around the entry of the Boston precinct. She tilts her head to the side, examining the copper statue. She reaches a hand up to touch the metal, but quickly pulls it away when she hears the elevator doors open.

Vince Korsak smiles to the woman as he steps through the heavy metal doors of the elevator, "Miss Kowalski?" He moves toward her when she nods, motioning to the cafe, "Have you had breakfast?"

"Please, call me Susan...no, I haven't eaten breakfast." The woman nods, walking beside the man, "That's a very interesting statue."

"Couldn't tell you what it was if I tried." He smirks to her, trying to put her at ease as they take a seat, "Order whatever you'd like. It's on the house." Korsak nods, smiling a little more when he sees Angela Rizzoli near the table.

Angela smiles to Korsak, placing a mug in front of him and filling it with coffee without even saying anything to the man, just knowing what his usual routine is, "Could I interest you in some coffee too?" She glances to the woman at the table, placing the mug in front of her when she nods, filling it up as well. She places a gentle hand on Korsak's back, "You go ahead and look at the menu, he can wait until you're ready." She offers the detective a smirk as she steps away to put the coffee pot back in the maker.

Susan smiles softly to him, "Is that your wife?"

Vince shakes his head with a surprised chuckle, "No, nothing like that. I come here often. Angela makes great food." He takes a sip of the warm liquid in his mug, "Great coffee too."

Angela nears the table again, "I know what Vince wants, but what would you like?" She grins to the woman at the table.

"Eggs and toast? Over medium?" Susan asks quietly, "Is that okay?"

"Nice and easy. Your plates will be up in a few minutes." She smirks, walking away once more.

"Ms. Kowalski, I spent the majority of yesterday looking into your case and I believe it's safe to say that you were right to bring it up to us." Korsak nods, watching the woman in front of him, "Can't help but notice you look a lot more calm than you did yesterday."

Susan shrugs slightly. She wasn't especially pretty, her frame lean, but not very muscular, "It's..." She takes a deep breath, releasing it slowly before she speaks, "I've been trying to get someone, anyone to listen to me for almost three years now. I know what I saw, I know what I experienced. For this to be considered natural causes is crime. This was nothing of the sort." She swallows, pausing, "Shouldn't you have a tape recorder or something?"

"It's just the two of us talking right now. You're going to tell this story a few more times before the day is out. I want to hear it first, from you, before someone takes your official statement." Vince takes another sip of his coffee, "Could you tell me a bit about Grace Blaszczyk first? What you knew of her..."

"You said her name correctly." She smiles softly.

"My last name is Korsak...that isn't Italian." Vince offers her a smile, "Go ahead."

_The rear of a yellow school bus. Susan glanced over to her student who was attempting to find a comfortable position. The young girl's protruding abdomen wasn't helping matters. She smirked softly, remember a time when she felt the same way with her sons. "Grace." She said gently, the rest of the students sat in the front, which were the rules of this trip every year and in the school in general. Students had to fill up the front of the bus first. "Grace." She tried again._

_The young woman looked to her teacher, picking her head up, "I'm...I'm sorry. Did you want me to move up?" Grace swallowed, knowing there were a few rows ahead of her that were empty, "I just wanted a little quiet to take a quick nap. I'll move up." She knew naps were another thing that weren't allowed while on the bus, an incident the year before in which a student forgot to get off at his stop and instead slept all the way through, being left at the bus yard._

"_No, no. Come here." She motioned, watching as the girl slowly moved over, sharing the seat with her. The older woman kept her voice hushed, "No one is going to look back here. They're busy chattering and doing God knows what." Susan nodded, "If you're going to take a nap, you can lean against me. I know I'm not well cushioned or anything like that, but it may be more comfortable than leaning your head against a vibrating window."_

_Grace smiled softly, appearing to have what might have been tears in her eyes, as if there weren't many people in her life who showed her a sense of courtesy, "Are you sure, Miss K?"_

_Susan nodded, wrapping a gentle arm around the teenager, "Close your eyes, we have another twenty minutes before we get there."_

"The two of you were always close?" Korsak takes a bite of his usual dried beef and gravy on toast.

She shakes her head, "Not particularly. Not until after first quarter of her Junior year...the year she..."

He nods, "What did you teach?"

"Anatomy and physiology." Susan takes a bite of the corner of her toast, "I was a nurse before I went into teaching. Loved teaching though. I had to retire...I thought I could...I thought I could handle it." She takes a sip of her coffee, "Then a new day would start and I'd look to her seat and the black...the black cloth they put over it in remembrance of her. I just couldn't."

Korsak continues to watch the woman, taking mental notes the entire time, "Did Grace have many friends?"

"Yes and no." She shrugs a little, "There were a few girls, but she didn't speak of them often. She worked a lot when she wasn't in school."

Vince furrows her brow slightly, "What about her parents?"

Susan shakes her head, "Her mother and I went to high school together. We knew of one another, but we weren't close or anything like that. I didn't even know she was her mother until I went to her funeral. I went for Grace, any time a parent of a student or a student themself dies, some of the faculty go to the viewing and funeral. Myself included." She sighs, "That's when I realized just who she was. Grace's father had a good ten, maybe fifteen years on her mother. He left the family when she was seven and has had a string of college aged wives. He was given custody of Grace when her mother died. She became pregnant not long after."

He nods, "Was her father supportive?"

Again the woman shakes her head, this time slowly, "He was uncaring from the start, even before. I wouldn't say he hated her, but he didn't make her life any easier, if you know what I mean."

"I do." Vince sighs, taking another sip of coffee, "Did you ever need any parent-teacher conferences with him?"

"I was worried about her, but she begged me not to call her father. She worked so that she could save up enough money to find a place of her own when the baby was born because she didn't want to be in the same house with him."

He leans back in his seat a little, "At any time, did you suspect abuse?"

_Susan heard what she believed to be knocking. She leaned her head up from her pillow as she pushed the covers away from her legs, sitting up in bed. She peered to the clock before getting up, pulling on her flannel robe. She jumped slightly at the sound of the thunder and subsequent lightning. She descended the stairs, hearing the knocking again, "I'm coming, I'm coming." Susan attempted to look through the peep hole, blurry eyed before pulling the door open, "Grace? What are you doing here?" She ushered the girl inside, "It's three in the morning, what are you doing awake?"_

_Grace shivered, soaked to the bone. Her eyes red as her arms were wrapped around herself, "I...I know it's Friday and I have...I have class in a..." She paused, shaking her head._

"_Oh, honey. Let's get you out of these clothes. My son probably has some that he left behind from when he went off to college. Sweatpants at least." Susan could tell the young woman had been crying. She gently guided the zipper down on her jacket. She guided it off the girl's shoulders, tossing it aside, noticing her only start to shake more, crying. "Oh, honey." She wrapped her arms around the girl, holding her tightly, "What happened?"_

"_I...I tried to get in the house and my key wouldn't work. I knocked and rang the doorbell and called and...and my Dad didn't answer. I even called the house phone." Grace shivered out her words, leaning into her teacher, "I just wanted to sleep."_

"_How did you get here?" She knew the girl didn't have a car and there were no busses this time of the night._

"_I walked."_

"_You...What do you mean you walked? It's a good few miles, at least." Susan shook her head, "Why didn't you call me?"_

"_I know." Grace nodded, "My phone died from calling my father and it got wet anyway during the walk...It's...I think it's broken." She swallowed, "Could I...I know it's late, but could I stay here tonight? I don't..." She fell silent for a moment, "I don't have anywhere else to go."_

"_Of course. How about I run you a nice hot bath and get you some dry clothes so that you can warm up?" She turned away from the girl, holding her hand as she led her towards the bathroom._

"_I'd like that." The teenager smiled softly._

Maura returns to the squad room, glancing around for a moment, finally seeing Jane. She sits in a chair next to her desk, waiting for her to get off of the phone.

Jane glances over to her friend, "How did it go?"

She shakes her head, "His exact words were 'Don't bother her. I don't give a shit what you think happened' and then he closed the door on me." The doctor nods, "Frankie was with me."

"It's true." Frankie nods, not far behind the Medical Examiner. He takes his seat at his desk, "I mean, if I was a father and I heard foul play might be involved with the death of my only daughter, you'd better believe I'd want someone brought to justice on it...if they managed to get to them before I killed them myself."

Maura leans back in the chair, folding her legs at the knee, "It was incredible. I've never seen such a display of indifference in all my life." She shakes her head, "Was the warrant approved?"

"Of course." Jane smiles to her.

"Oh, Jane. Ma called me. Said Korsak has that some woman downstairs eating breakfast." Frankie nods to her, "Sounds like the crazy woman at the crime scene the other day."

The raven haired young woman nods, almost sadly, "He's taking this one to heart."

"Why hasn't he brought her up to question her?" He shakes his head.

"Susan Kowalski, the woman from the crime scene the other day, exhibited signs of a deep social anxiety and possible agoraphobia-" Maura starts.

"Isn't that the thing where people stay in their house? Why would she be at a shopping mall?" Frankie makes a face, typing something on his computer.

"No. Agoraphobia is a term that comes from the Greek words 'agora' and 'phobos' which have the literal translation of 'fear of the marketplace'. It doesn't mean people always lock themselves away. Also, considering what she may have experienced within the confines of the same shopping mall, I can see how she may have a fear towards it." The medical examiner tucks her hair behind her ear, "She may also have a slight case of obsessive compulsive disorder...I noticed she smothered her hands in hand sanitizer at least four times within a fifteen minute period."

"Thank you for that lesson in Greek root words, Doctor Isles. Please, tell me more." Jane's face shows a sense of wonder as she opens her mouth excitedly.

"Really?" Maura's eyes widen as she smiles.

Jane shakes her head slowly, then looks back to her computer screen, "I've been reading more about the woman, Susan Kowalski. Seems she suffered a mental breakdown when she returned to work following the death of the victim and voluntarily retired. She's been a teacher for over thirty years and a nurse before that." She sighs softly, "I don't know what to make of it. No past criminal history. Three grown sons, a doctor and a lawyer. There's not even a parking ticket. Her husband died when her sons were young, allowed her to purchase the brownstone where she now resides." She glances between the two people next to her.

"This woman isn't a suspect." The doctor replies softly.

"I know that, but I still have to check and see if anyone else has problems with her. I even checked her page on this site where students can anonymously submit ratings and stuff." Jane motions to her computer screen, "Best teacher, Best teacher ever, Hard but I totally got what she was saying, The mall challenge was a blast." She nods, "The only bad review I found said, 'Too bad she has Grace B up her ass. Hate them both. Say goodbye'. I would consider that a threat."

"Yeah, against who though." Frankie makes a face, hearing the elevator doors open to see Korsak and the woman in question step through. He stands instantly.

Korsak smiles to the group, "Susan, this is Detective Jane Rizzoli, Detective Frankie Rizzoli, and Doctor Maura Isles." He motions to each person, letting them have a chance to shake the woman's hand.

"It is a true pleasure meeting you, Ms. Kowalski." Maura stands, taking the woman's hand between her own and holding onto it longer than the first two did, "Thank you for bringing this case to our attention."

Susan nods nervously, "Why is there a doctor here?"

"I'm the Chief Medical Examiner of the greater Boston area." She offers her a soft smile.

"Will you be doing another autopsy?" She glances around, almost nervously, "Is it always this loud in here?"

"Yes, we have a warrant to exhume the body." Maura tilts her head to the side, "Ligyrophobia isn't-"

"I don't have a fear of loud noises, Doctor Isles, I'm just asking why it's loud..." Susan offers a soft smile.

Jane starts to grin, "Don't need to tell her about the root words, do you, Doctor Isles?" She laughs a little to herself when she receives a look from her friend, "Ms. Kowalski, I want to apologize for how I acted when I saw you. I instantly chalked it up to you being crazy and I'm sorry about that."

She nods, "It's okay." She glances back to the Medical Examiner, "Doctor, would you mind if I aided you during the autopsy?"

"I...I usually work alone. Have you kept your license current?" Maura watches the woman.

"Yes, I volunteer at the hospital on the weekends for a few hours here and there. It only needs to be sixty hours a year, but...when someone is in trouble, I help them." Susan applies gel sanitizer to her hands, "I just want to...I want to help you as much as I can."

"You already have, Ms. Kowalski." Frankie folds his arms.

"In the short amount of time that we were close, she quickly became like a daughter to me. This is personal." Susan nods to him.

"Okay. If you're ready to give your statement, I'll take you to get that started." The young man leads her away from the group.

Jane waits for the two people to be out of hearing range before glancing to her old partner, "Well?"

"Get the girl's father, and possibly stepmother in here. Also, see if there's any friends that would be willing to come and speak to us. These kids would have just graduated last year. Might not be too hard to find." Korsak shakes his head, glancing between the women before returning to his desk.


	3. Chapter 3

**AN: From here on out, there may be triggers of abuse here and there for some people.**

Vince Korsak smiles to the woman when she exits the conference room, having recorded her experiences on both an audio file and a video file, "You did well." He nods.

"It isn't about doing well, Officer Korsak. It's about finding the truth." Susan Kowalski clears her throat, applying gel sanitizer to her hands, "Has my request of Doctor Isles been granted?"

"Here's the thing, Doctor Isles usually works alone, with exception to a detective down there once in awhile. This isn't like sitting with a patient, Susan. She isn't going to look the same."

"I'm aware of the toll decomposition can take on the human body." She nods to him, her words general, "There was no funeral for her. No memorial service except the one we had at the school. There were child psychologists in the gymnasium set up at different points and...no one even came to that. Her father didn't even bother. I called his home multiple times, left messages on his mobile phone..." Susan shakes her head, "Officer Korsak, I need to do this for her. I need to do this because I need to make sure she knows someone did care about her...and that her memory is taken seriously." She holds her purse handle in front of her, using both of her hands

"_There is a women's organization just up the way. They offer free prenatal care. Isn't that great?" Grace Blaszczyk stands in front of her father, a graying man well into his seventies, "And it will be of no cost to you. There are government subsidies and welfare unless my job grants me the extra hours I've requested."_

_Stanley Blaszczyk scowls, inhaling from his pipe. A wealthy man from both inheritance and success in the stock market. "Just like your mother. Nothing but a whore." He rises from his seat, walking over to the record player that rests against the wall._

"_But I..." She swallowed, looking toward the expensive hardwood floor, "You know this wasn't my fault."_

"_I offered to pay for you to take care of it, but you declined my offer-"_

"_Why would I kill my baby when you could have just..." Grace picked her head up, realizing this wasn't an argument she wasn't going to win._

"_You are sixteen." He hissed._

"_And you smell like Ketel One." She was far too smart for her own good, "I told you what was happening. You didn't want to believe me. You never do. Didn't believe that he could...and now, the only way to prove it is if I have this baby."_

"_Who are you proving something to? Me?" Stanley shook his head, then began to laugh loudly, "I don't give a shit about you or your claims. You're disgusting." He looked to the young woman again, "And you know damn well that the police are going to ignore it because I can pay to make that happen."_

_Grace placed her hands on her hips, knowing she would never satisfy or earn her father's love, "Well, it's two possibilities and I know you don't want it to be the other one."_

"Get this, Stanley Blaszczyk, the father of the victim, has a habit of marrying them when they're young." Frankie nods, swiveling the computer monitor around for his sister to see, "This is an article from six years ago about his marriage at the time. The girl was seventeen. Her mother signed the papers for her and even papers so that she could drink champagne at the reception. They had a huge spread in the paper."

Jane makes a face, "That's so gross." She shakes her head, "Why wasn't he picked up for statutory?"

"Because..." The young man shrugs, "I don't know. They would have probably met the year before they were married or something, right?"

"She would had to have been sixteen when they had sex." She runs a hand through her hair, scrolling down on her own computer screen, "Unless he paid them off. This guy is slippery...and rich. Three accounts of lewd acts with a child, each case was dropped by the plaintiff."

"Paying them off." Frankie shakes his head, "I could give them all calls, see what's up."

"If they're willing to talk." Jane nods, "Also, we need to see if he has any connections to state government or police."

"Guys aren't going to like this. This could be a witch hunt." He starts writing numbers down on a notepad on his desk.

She shakes her head, "I don't care. There's a dead girl whose death went virtually unknown. I'm going to find out why." Jane sighs, "We're having a really hard time finding a yearbook or something featuring her. Not to mention any friends. The stepmother doesn't want to do anything that her husband doesn't approve of." The thin woman stands, rolling her eyes, "Frankie, let's go see if we can talk to Stanley Blaszczyk at his office."

_Susan sat on the floor of her brownstone, scattered wooden parts grouped together in various piles around her. She read a thin sheet of paper, periodically glancing up to a pile of parts._

_Grace slowly stepped down the stairs, careful with each step. She look around the living room, "What's all of this?"_

_The older woman jumped slightly, glancing to the girl on the stairs with a smile on her face, "Be careful where you step. Do you have something on your feet?"_

"_No." She walked down the stairs more, taking a seat on the landing of the bottom step, looking to the other woman, "What's all this stuff?"_

"_Well, I figured since you're staying here, that you'd like to continue doing so when the baby is born. So, I bought a crib for you."_

"_Why did you do that?" Grace's voice was small._

"_It isn't safe for a baby to sleep in bed with you." Susan shook her head, noticing the teenager growing more and more upset, "I know of your plans, but no one is going to rent to you until you're at least eighteen. When you're able to afford to live on your own, you can take it with you."_

"_I don't..." She shook her head, "I don't know why you're being so nice to me. I don't have anything to give you. You don't want what they want and I can't help you."_

_Leaning closer, the woman gently touched the girl's knee, "Grace, what are you talking about?"_

Maura folds her arms, standing at the foot end of the metal table. The teenager's slightly decomposed body rests, her limbs slightly shriveled, her bones more prominent. Her clothing still worn. She hears the door open and slowly turns her head toward the sound, "Ms. Kowalski, I'm glad you're here."

Korsak leads the woman in, "Doctor Isles, if you need me, I'll be at my desk." He offers her a knowing nod before stepping back through the door.

Susan slowly steps over to the body, swallowing. She huffs a soft laugh, "She was wearing the necklace." She looks the body up and down, whispering to herself, "He never changed her..." She clears her throat, looking to the Medical Examiner, "These are the clothes she wore on the day she died." Her voice was more powerful with conviction.

Maura furrows her brow slightly, "He never changed her clothing for burial?"

"Doesn't appear so." She swallows, looking down at herself.

"Would you like a pair of scrubs? I have a few extra sets in my office, if you'd like to change there."

Susan nods, "Thank you, Doctor." She lets the woman lead the way for her, "They are clean, correct?"

"Of course." Maura offers her a smirk, watching as the woman becomes fascinated by the artifacts around the room, "African tribal masks."

"I'm aware." The thin framed woman changes quickly, nudity not being a sense of self consciousness for her, "You spoke of x-rays yesterday. Did any of them come in?"

"It was exactly as I suspected. I will be able to examine the body in greater detail, and hopefully I will be able to obtain a weapon impression."

Susan smirks slightly, "Doctor Isles, I know how this works." She pulls on a pair of latex gloves, "I taught my students Criminal Pathology...as one of the sections of my Anatomy class. They loved it. They had to solve a murder." She gently touches the arm of the body of her former student, "Everyone loved it...If you want to get a bunch of self righteous teenagers, who have nothing in common except their age, to work together, you tell them to solve a crime."

Maya listens to the woman, slightly alarmed by her intelligence on the subject, "Let's try to preserve the clothes. Just put them on that tray." She offers her a pair of scissors, "If you notice that there is any type of other rip in the clothing, cut around it." She does the same with her own pair, "What is the significance of her necklace?" She doesn't look to the woman, knowing the woman was looking at her, "It was the first thing you noticed."

"I only had sons." She swallows, "And they weren't about to wear a thin golden chain, so I gave it to her...and I bought her a locket." Susan smiles softly, gently removing it from her body, she does her best to keep her emotions at bay, "I told her how much she looked like her mother...and she did...a great deal." She opened the golden heart shaped object, "One side is her and one side her mother." She looks to it for a moment before setting it onto the tray.

"The casket wasn't very expensive...However, it aided in the preservation of her body because I don't think she...I don't think she was fully embalmed like we thought she would have been...like she should have been." The Medical Examiner shakes her head slowly, taking prints and temperatures. She finally cuts open the abdomen, bringing the scalpel down. She removes severs the connections of the teenager's reproductive organs to the rest of her body. Picking her head up to ask for something, but instead is met with a silver bowl, "Thank you." Maura offers a soft smile. She knows the recorder is running to record her findings, but she uses it to also learn more about the woman, "You mentioned that you have sons?"

Susan nods, "Yes. Much larger than me, broad shoulders like their father." She smirks, "One is a thoracic surgeon and the other is a lawyer with his license in a few states."

"You must be proud."

"Very." She nods, "It wasn't easy putting them through school. My days at the school, nights at the hospital."

Maura raises an eyebrow, "That sounds incredibly stressful."

"You do what you have to do when it comes to your children." Susan shrugs, "Have you any, Doctor?"

"No." She continues to check the corpse, "There seems to be some burns here...to the right axilla. That's odd." She shakes her head, "It appears to actually be a brand...letters...SB."

"_I didn't mean to upset you, Grace." Susan followed the young girl up the stairs, walking into her bedroom. She glances around, never wanting to bother her and allowing her to have her own personal space. She looked around, quickly noticing that the mirrors were covered. She suspected that the teenager was hurting, more mentally than physically, "I just want you to know that you always have a home here. I didn't mean to upset you."_

"_Something isn't right with the baby." Grace's voice was just above a whisper, "It feels weird."_

_She furrowed her brow slightly, "Let me get my stethoscope." Susan quickly jogged into the hallway, pulling open the door to the closet in the hall. She reached to the top, pulling down her black leather medic bag. Susan reached inside, pulling her teal colored stethoscope out, looping it around her neck. She carried the bag with her instead she needed something else within it, returning to the teen, "Have you been bleeding at all?"_

_The young woman shook her head, pulling her knees up slightly, a wetness fell from the corner of her eye. "I just wanted to prove it. I just...no one would listen to me."_

"_I believe you, honey. I'm listening." Susan placed the eartips where they belonged, rubbing the chest piece against her hand to warm it slightly and to ensure she had the correct portion turned, "Let me check you, then we'll see if I can hear anything there. I can't promise anything, but...at least we may have a better idea..." She shrugged, "Let's just see, okay? Pull your sweatshirt up." She watched as the girl hesitated, but then pulled it up._

"_It keeps like...twitching or something." Grace chewed her lip, watching the woman's hand carefully._

_Susan listened to her, smirking ever so slightly before pulling her hand away and looping the stethoscope around her neck again, "You're fine."_

"_No, no. It's...it's...it feels weird and..."_

"_It's just moving." She nodded, taking hold of the girl's hand, "It's just the fetus moving."_

_The panic began to fade from Grace's face, "Really?"_

"_Really. How far along are you?"_

"_Like...twelve or thirteen weeks." She swallowed, "I feel so stupid."_

"_No, honey. You aren't stupid." Susan reached up, watching the girl flinch at first before she realized she wasn't about to be injured. She sighed, stroking her hair, "Just let me know when you think something is wrong, okay? Never be afraid to let me know. Promise me."_

_Grace nodded, "I promise."_

"_Good." She offered her a soft, reassuring smile, "Now, tell me why your mirrors are covered."_

"She exhibited spectrophobia?" Maura picks her head up.

Susan nods, "It looked like she was sitting shiva." She sighs softly, "I know she was being abused. I just...I just feel it."

"This brand makes me believe you're correct...and probably abused in more ways than one." The young woman continues her autopsy.

Jane pushes the door open to the autopsy area, "Find anything?" She pauses, seeing the other woman. She is surprised to see her, considering the closeness between her and the victim, "Hello, Ms. Kowalski."

Maura glances up to the detective, "It's taken you a while." She smirks, glancing to the other woman, "She usually arrives not long after I've begun my dissection."

"She needs the help." Jane smirks, "Find anything?"

"Few things, It was not a ectopic pregnancy that killed her, which we already assumed. The Victim was buried in the clothing she was killed in."

"What?" Rizzoli looks disgusted.

"Exactly. Just a pair of blue jeans, a large short sleeved cotton shirt, and a sweatshirt. I'm going to have Suzie take a closer look." Maura sighs, "She also has a brand under her arm. The initials 'SB'. Whether that stands for something or someone is-"

"Her father's initials." Jane almost growls, "Frankie and I went to his house, big fucking house by the way, and he instantly told us to contact his lawyer...before we even said anything. The wife was behind him. Just stood there, staring at us...this smirk on her face."

"Geliophobia?"

"What?"

Susan shakes her head, "That's the fear of laughter. There is no general fear of smiles." She glances between the women, sensing their slight uneasiness, "Sorry."

Jane shakes her head, "It's fine by me." She can't help by laughing slightly to herself."

"Shut up." Maura mumbles to her, walking away to weigh various organs.


End file.
